Welcome to today's encouragement from Our Daily Bread.

I'm Arthur Jackson and I titled our reading, Dark Moments.

I had a dark moment.

Those five words capture the internal agony of a popular female celebrity during the COVID-19

pandemic. Adjusting to a new normal was part of her challenge, and in her turmoil, she acknowledged

that she wrestled with thoughts of suicide, pulling out of the downward spiral, including

sharing her struggle with a friend who cared.

We're all susceptible to tumultuous hours, days, and seasons.

Valleys in hard places aren't foreign, but getting out of such places can be challenging,

and seeking the assistance of mental health professionals

is sometimes needed. In Psalm 143, we hear and are instructed by David's prayer during one of the

dark times of his life. The exact situation is unknown, but his prayers to God are honest and hope-filled.

The enemy pursues me.

He crushes me to the ground.

He makes me dwell in the darkness like those long dead.

So my spirit grows faint within me.

My heart within me is dismayed.

For believers in Jesus, it's not enough to acknowledge what's going on within us to ourselves, to our friends, or to medical specialists.

We must earnestly come to God, thoughts and all, with prayers that include the earnest petitions

found in Psalm 143, 7 to 10.

Our dark moments can also be times for deep prayers, seeking the light and life only God can

bring.

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